Chillicothe’s post office opened in 1839, and 15% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns · #19 of 247 in Missouri. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them three historic districts with 58 buildings between them. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1860.
From Chillicothe’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Chillicothe began
When was Chillicothe founded?
1839
The Chillicothe post office opened in 1839, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1855. Another post office, Livingston (1857), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 994 in 18602020 census: 9,107187 years
How historic is Chillicothe?
A
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Chillicothe post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1855.
History grade
What drives Chillicothe’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chillicothe is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #19 of 247 in Missouri. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chillicothe’s overall grade.
Missouri towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Missouri town has 2.4 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Chillicothe’s 67.2 sits above most of its state (89% of Missouri towns have fewer) while its 60 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.2 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1855.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Chillicothe’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Chillicothe yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Chillicothe ( chil-ih-KOTH-ee) is a city in and the county seat of Livingston County, Missouri, United States. The population was 9,107 at the 2020 census. The name Chillicothe is Shawnee for 'big town'. Chillicothe is known as "The Home of Sliced Bread". For many years its schools were segregated and African American students attended what eventually became known as Garrison School, named after William Lloyd Garrison.
Its first post office opened in 1839. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 9,515 to 9,107 (-4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
By decade
Chillicothe, decade by decade
4 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1950s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
The Chillicothe post office opened in 1839, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1855.
How does Chillicothe rank for history?
Chillicothe is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #19 of 247 in Missouri. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Chillicothe?
4 listings: 1 building, among them the Grace Episcopal Church and Building (listed 1980, the first), and 3 historic districts, the Chillicothe Commercial Historic District, the Courthouse Square Historic District and the Chillicothe Industrial Home for Girls, with 58 contributing buildings. 60 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Chillicothe?
15% of Chillicothe’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.2 points), against a typical 8.4% for a Missouri town; the median home was built in 1962.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (5), the Library of Congress (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1905
c. 1908
1942
1942
1942
1942
